reflects the ways in which students currently collaborate and communicate outside the classroom
Aspects of these tools that require careful consideration:
non-linear; requires different assessment standards
unclear what kind of retention will result
promotes non-contextual retention of "factoids" if not properly implemented and overseen
everything on the web is "printed": students must be carefully taught how to verify the information they find online
requires a computer lab with relatively modern equipment
you need to thoroughly test what is and isn't blocked within the school
many of our students have limited access to technology outside of school
these tools are outside the comfort zone for many of us both in terms of technology use and how communication differs when using them--we must "reframe" to effectively use them
If you try to use these tools, I recommend that you pre-test everything and find one or two students within the classroom who can be student leaders and help explain the technology.
Resources for tech inclusion in your classroom:
MassOne Portal (especially useful for the lesson planner, which can automatically generate links to the Mass DESE curricular frameworks): click here
Examples of multimedia projects from the recent New Literacies Institute/DESE Literacy and New Technologies initiatives: click here
Voice Thread
Glogster
Animoto
Example of a Moodle site (LHS Visual Arts): click here
Example of a personal WordPress site (Miriam Morgenstern's Cambodia-related blog from last summer): click here
Example of a class-oriented Wikispaces site (Lisa Menasian's AP USII site): click here
Advantages of using these tech tools:
Aspects of these tools that require careful consideration:
If you try to use these tools, I recommend that you pre-test everything and find one or two students within the classroom who can be student leaders and help explain the technology.